Coutts & Co unveils Matthew Williamson’s decade of fashion at the design museum

…..The ‘Best of British’ collaborate with style

Coutts & Co is delighted to announce that in celebration of Matthew Williamson’s ten years in fashion, it is sponsoring an exhibition of his work at the Design Museum, London, from 17 October 2007 to 31 January 2008.

Prior to the opening there will be an exclusive preview exhibition for customers at Coutts’ office in the Strand, London. Following the main exhibition, the Design Museum show will tour to Urbis in Manchester opening Spring 2008.

Matthew Williamson is a unique success story within the British fashion industry. Setting out on his career as a fashion graduate with no financial backing in 1997, he now has his own store in the heart of Mayfair and his acclaimed collections are worn by international celebrity clients. Matthew Williamson - 10 Years in Fashion will focus on the process and use of pattern, print and colour which have defined Williamson’s work and will be centralised around 4 main themes: colour and Psychedelia, Hyper-nature, Global extravaganza and Lifestyle.

Matthew Williamson, commented: “It is an incredible opportunity to be celebrating my 10th year anniversary at the Design Museum London and showcasing my designs from the past ten years. I hope that the exhibition itself will be a fascinating journey into the inspirations, design and processes involved in my work."

Sarah Deaves, Chief Executive of Coutts & Co, commented: “We are absolutely thrilled to be sponsoring this fantastic exhibition to celebrate Matthew’s ten years in fashion as part of our ongoing support of British designer talent. His work remains at the forefront of the industry with his cutting edge colour and print designs and natural ability to dress women beautifully. We look forward to entertaining our clients at many of the events that we will be hosting with Matthew.”

“Coutts has been a proud supporter of the arts throughout its 300 year history, not least by managing the financial affairs of many fashion designers, milliners and tailors, but also in 1856 an account was opened to help dressmakers and milliners who had fallen on hard times. Today, we are able to support the best of British designers in more creative ways, including hosting fashion shows for clients, commissioning them to redesign our Account and World Card’s, and just this month we have been running a design competition in association with D&AD Global Student Awards.”

The exhibition will feature iconic pieces from the past decade, including dresses made famous on the red carpet by Sienna Miller, Kiera Knightley, Mischa Barton and Kylie Minogue. To be shown at the exhibition is a specially commissioned film which offers a behind-the-scenes look at the energy and vision that goes into launching a new collection. Matthew’s sketchbooks will also be on display, providing an insight into the way he has worked since his days as a fashion student, from an initial inspiration of a pattern, texture or colour, to the finished product worn on the catwalk.

In celebration of the anniversary, the gallery windows of the Coutts head office in the Strand will be transformed by Matthew Williamson with graphics synonymous with the Matthew Williamson brand and tying in with the design of the exhibition. Matthew will also design a limited edition scarf, which will be presented as a gift to Coutts female clients at exclusive events at Coutts, 440 Strand, the Design Museum and Urbis.

An interview with Matthew Williamson will be displayed at www.Couttswoman.com

For further information please contact:

Jo Thorne, Regional PR Manager, Coutts & Co. Tel: 020 7957 2650, mob: 07766070859, or email: joanna.thorne@coutts.com

Notes to Editors

·Coutts is the international private banking arm of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group. The Royal Bank of Scotland Group is one of the world's largest banking groups.

·Coutts manages the wealth of 100,000 high net worth clients worldwide through a network of over 40 offices globally.

·The first Coutts regional office to be opened was Eton in 1961. Today, Coutts has regional offices in Bath, Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Chelmsford, Eton, Guildford, Hampshire, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Nottingham, Oxford and Tunbridge Wells.

·Coutts offers clients a range of products and services covering sophisticated investment products together with expertise in trust and fiduciary services and UK tax and banking services.

·Coutts & Co is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Coutts & Co Registered in England No 36695Registered Office 440 Strand London WC2R 0QS.

·Calls may be recorded.

www.coutts.com

Matthew Williamson

Born in Chorlton, Manchester, Williamson grew up there until the age of 17, when he moved to London to study at Central St Martins. In the summer of 1997, a phone call to British Vogue led to meeting Plum Sykes, then fashion assistant at the magazine. Encouraged by her reaction to his ideas, Williamson created a women's wear collection which resulted in a September fashion show Electric Angels during London Fashion Week, in which Jade Jagger, Helena Christensen and Kate Moss agreed to model. The show was an immediate success. Over the past 10 years Williamson's collections have continued to grow cementing his reputation as one of the UK's leading designers. He won Elle Designer of the Year 2004, has been nominated three times for British Designer of the Year, and in 2005 was awarded the prestigious Moet and Chandon Fashion Award. In 2005 Williamson became Creative Director at Emilio Pucci.

Design Museum

The Design Museum is a world leading museum of modern and contemporary design. Since its foundation in 1989, the museum has won international acclaim for exhibitions on modern design history and contemporary design, for Designer of the Year and for championing new design talent. The Design Museum celebrates design’s richness and diversity and its power to enhance daily life by exploring innovation and excellence in every area, from industrial design, graphics and multimedia, to fashion and architecture. Design Museum exhibitions tour to other museums nationally and internationally.

Design Museum, Shad Thames, London, www.designmuseum.org

Coutts support of the Arts

·Coutts clients from the 18th and 19th centuries included a number of people working in the tailoring, millinery, lace making and dressmaking business.  The earliest tailor's account dates from 1744. 

·There are a few connections with the Wedgwood pottery family. We also know that James Coutts purchased pottery from Wedgwood, as there is a receipted bill to him dated 1771.

·The cabinetmaker, George Brookshaw, had an account from 1818. He was a great exponent of painting furniture and was patronised by the likes of the Duke of Devonshire and the Prince of Wales.

·The cabinet-making and upholstering family of Gillow (best known from the end of the 19th century perhaps as Waring and Gillows) were one of the best known in the field in the 18th and 19th centuries. The family's reputation was developed over three generations and in 1813 for economic and social reasons, the family retired from active participation in the cabinet-making business and the firm was sold to three partners: Redmayne, Whiteside and Ferguson, who retained the Gillow name. This partnership (and succeeding incarnations) were customers of Coutts from around 1816.

·James Poole, founder of the tailoring business, which is now Henry Poole in Savile Row, opened an account with Coutts in 1819.  In 1793 Lewis Bazalgette opened an account.  He was a tailor, but also a merchant and financier.  He was so successful that he lent money to George the Prince Regent, who later became George IV.

·The jeweller, Philip Rundell, had accounts in the 1820s. He was the superintendent of the jewellery department of the great firm of Rundell & Bridge, later Rundell, Bridge and Rundell. They were Crown jewellers and had the finest workshops at their disposal, including that of Paul Storr, the silversmith.

·In 1856 an account was opened with us for subscriptions to help dressmakers and milliners who had fallen on hard times.

·During the 19th century, Coutts also had accounts for dressmakers who specialised in certain fashions, e.g. French styles.  One dressmaker, Mrs Elizabeth Johnston, who opened an account in 1830, was dressmaker to Queen Adelaide, wife of William IV. 

·We know Angela Burdett-Coutts had dresses made by Worth, the fashion designer who had started his career in London and moved to Paris. Some of the drawings for his dresses are in the V&A.

This year, Coutts will be supporting;

·The Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House (production sponsor)

·English National Opera (performance sponsor)

·Welsh National Opera (performance sponsor)

·Opera North (corporate member)

·Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (recital)

·Royal Court Theatre (production sponsor)

·Almeida Theatre (principal sponsor)

·Propeller (touring production sponsor)

·Live Theatre in Newcastle (production sponsor)

·Henley Festival (sponsor of Katherine Jenkins’ performance)